luaren:

In light of the recent UCSB shooting, it has become abundantly clear that the MRA movement is not a funny subsection of Reddit anymore. It should be considered a terrorist organization.

Followers of this movement not only promote the vehement harassment of dissenters online, but also the senseless slaughter of women offline. The goal behind these actions are clear: these men want to sway the public into believing women are the enemy, and must be eradicated.

This recent shooting is not an isolated incident. Mass murders, either in the name of Men’s Rights Activism and/or supported by it, have been committed time and time before:

• Marc Lepine: killed 17 women on a university campus in the “Montreal Massacre”
• Tom Ball: firebombed a courthouse, wrote a manifesto encouraging others to bomb government buildings that is posted on major MRA websites
• George Sodini: killed 3 and injured 4 after opening fire at an LA fitness, attributed his actions to rejection by women
• Darren Mack: stabbed his ex-wife to death over a custody battle, sniped a family court judge, heralded by MRAs
• Scott Dekraii: killed 8 at a salon (including estranged wife) in rage over a custody battle, supported openly by MRAs after the incident

And now we have Elliot Rodger, who killed 6 people and cited the Men’s Rights Movement as a huge influence towards his misogyny-fueled actions of bloodshed.

Besides violent actions, MRAs actively promote and encourage acts of brutality in the name of their movement. All of this is evident by online forums that host the community.

This is terrorism.

United States Code 18 § 2331 defines “domestic terrorism” as the following:

• Involve acts dangerous to human life that violate federal or state law;
• Appear intended (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination. or kidnapping;
• Occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the U.S.

MRAs have proven to fit this criteria in all of the above ways. This movement and it’s followers are a danger not only to the women they so hate, but also to society as a whole.

Ignoring this movement’s influence is to legitimize it as if it is deserving of a platform. These men are no more than an organized group of hatred, who weaponize misogyny in order to spread their message.

To classify MRA as a terrorist organization would be the first step I’m ensuring the public safety of women.